The effect of somatostatin on the rectal muscle has been studied in 15 healthy volunteers who received on 2 separate days and in a random order a continuous 1-hour infusion somatostatin (250 μg initially as an intravenous bolus and then 250 μg/h via infusion) or placebo (saline 0.15 M). Our results show that somatostatin significantly reduces the rectal basal tone after 30 and 50 min of infusion without modifying the rectal distensibility. Although they were obtained through a pharmacological increase of plasma somatostatin levels, these data suggest that somatostatin could play a part in the reservoir function of the rectu